Filter Queen

On 7/8/2014 Christine Rich, a representative of Health-Mor came to our house to demonstrate a FilterQueen vacuum and clean air machine. Ms. Rich stated that for $3, 000 we could purchase a vacuum cleaner and 2 of the clean air machines. She demonstrated the machines and stated that they had a life time warranty as long as we had the machines serviced once per year. She went on to state that the company provided the necessary replacement filters and would even come to your house and replace them when you called them. I was shocked by the price, but thought that with a lifetime warranty and free replacement filters, it was better than eplacing cheaper machines every couple years and having to always buy new filters. We paid for the vacuum and one the clean air machines with a check and the other clean air machine with a credit card. About a month after the transaction we found out that someone was illegally using the credit card we had provided to pay for the second clean air machine. After a little digging and some help from video surveillance we found out that it was Christine Rich, the sales representative, who had been illegally using our credit card #. I have kept the police report and a text message from Ms. Rich containing her full confession. After the incident I tried to contact Bob Vidovich who was over Christine Rich. He stated that he was not responsible for the conduct of his commissioned sales reps and that we should handle the matter through the police (which we had already done). I told him we would like to return the machines for a full refund (as we felt very uncomfortable now with the whole credit card situation and doubted that we would be able to continue any kind of relationship with a company that does not take responsibility for their employees especially when they have stolen from one of their customers). Mr. Vidovich refused to take back the machines stating that he was financially unable to issue the refund. Another key sales point that Ms. Rich used was that their office was right there in the same town as us. Unfortunately when I went there for assistance they were all but packed up and leaving town. I asked Mr. Vidovich to provide me with some contact information for the ongoing service that we were promised and also someone else who could be reached as he was extremely hard to get a hold of (most of the time his # [protected] or [protected] would just ring and ring and ring or go to a generic voicemail). He gave me a phone # for the Senior Vice President and Regional Supervisor John whose # is [protected]. This gentleman was very unprofessional and belittling in his attempt to confirm, just like Mr. Vidovich, that they were not responsible for the commissioned sales representatives that they send out into our homes toting "their" products and "their" name. He did state that regardless of the actions or whereabouts of Christine Rich or Bob Vidovich that they would be responsible for the warranty and supplies for the machine. Unfortunately, just six months into owning these machines with "lifetime warranties" and "free filter changes", the floor attachment to the vacuum quit working. I called the service department for Health-Mor who referred me to Filter Queen of Bridgewater at [protected] for service. They dispatched a service technician who came to the house to fix the broken part. Upon his arrival we were informed that machine only had a 3 year warranty on some parts and a 5 year warranty on others. I know for a fact I did not misunderstand Ms. Rich in her sales pitch of a "lifetime" FULL warranty because I specifically had a concern over how much the warranty covered. I asked Ms. Rich what happened if there was damage that was the owner's fault.
My concern was that after paying $3, 000 for these machines that one of my dogs would chew a cord or a hose or an attachment and that I would be out a large amount of money to replace the part or even worse, would not be able to get it. She assured me that regardless of how the damage happened that all you had to do was call and the company would replace the part. I didn't necessarily question her response as I had a warranty on a computer that covered accidental damage and was repaired by the company at their full cost when one of my kids accidently knocked it off my desk and on to the floor. Worse than this, the technician informed my husband that we needed to give him a check for $178 for replacement filters that we were told only needed to be changed once every year "at no cost" and this was only a little over six months into our purchase. He also told my husband that one of the machines did not even have the "carbon filter" in it. We did not remove anything so obviously it was sold to us in that condition. I called Filter Queen of Bridgewater to ask why we were being charged for filters when the machines were sold to us with the promise of free replacement filters. I was put on the phone with the office manager, Mike Digioia, who like all others I have been in contact with from this company, stated that they would only stand by the warranty as stated in their manual and asked me if I received one. He proceeded to repeat the page #s I needed to refer to in response to each of my questions. He stated that I needed to contact the sales rep as she was responsible for following through with any promises she made outside of their stated warranty. I told him that if she provided us with such a document it was after she closed the sale and took our money and that I am sure after being convicted of credit card fraud, even if she were still working for the company, she would be overjoyed to provide me with the lifetime warranty, free yearly filter changes and yearly maintenance I was promised.